Officials in Halmstad municipality, Sweden, recently forced a teacher to remove their mask and prohibited the use of masks and all forms of PPE in schools. The municipality said there was no scientific evidence for wearing masks, citing the Swedish public health agency. At the time, agency guidance stated that there were “great risks” that masks would be used incorrectly. This guidance has since been removed.
To someone unfamiliar with the Swedish response to COVID-19, this mask ban might sound shocking. After all, while masks are not foolproof, there is evidence that indicates that they do help reduce the spread of COVID-19, especially in situations where maintaining distance is impossible – such as schools.
Oversaturated media market has led to bankruptcies
Secondary roads poorly maintained
Sources: Balkan Insight, CIA World Factbook, The Economist, Government of Canada Global Travel Advisory, International Monetary Fund, Republic of Macedonia State Statistical Office, Reuters, Transparency International, US State Department, World Bank
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Economically speaking, most former Communist countries fall between a less strictly directed version of the Soviet command economy and a Western-style market economy. North Macedonia has been moving toward the market model, says Viktor Mizo, managing director of Kostal Macedonia, a Ohrid-based unit of the Skopje Kostal Group, and former head of the North Macedonia Free Zones Authority and of the government’s investment and export promotion agency.